The real happiness
by krm3DeeDee
Summary: A RenxOC fic. She has to do a school project with Anna and she meets HIM. But the night hides dark creatures...does the name Hao sound familiar? Review.
1. Chapter 1

**_The real happiness_**

I don't own SK, so don't sue me. Read and review! 

Chapter 1: The project

Friday, 7.50 PM

It was the last class of the day for the 8th grade. All the students were waiting impatiently for the end of the day at school.

Somewhere in a desk, Yoh Asakura was almost asleep.

'I'm so tired' he thought 'just another ten minutes and this hour will be over'.

Behind him, a hand raised and smack him hard in the had.

"Try to stay awake" whispered Anna. "The teacher will choose the pairs of students for the projects."

"Bah, I'm not interested. Really, Anna, let me sleep just for two minutes!"

Anna hit him again.

"Will you stop it!" whispered Yoh

"Pay attention, Yoh!"

Many heads turned towards them, disturbed by the noise.

"OK, students, it's time to give you the subjects for your projects. Every team is made of two students. You will receive grades, so work on them" said the teacher. "Asakura!"

Yoh's head rose with hope. "Your project will be about Queen Elisabeth I and your partner is Oyamada Manta."

'Great,' thought Yoh 'he's smart and he'll do the research work for us while I sleep!'

"Kyouyama Anna! Your project is about Stonehenge and your partner is Alicia Thomas…" said the teacher, pointing towards a girl with brown hair and blue eyes that Anna barely knew "…our new transfer student. You are presenting next week "

Until the end of the class, every student had a theme for the project and a partner.

The bell rang, and all students left…all except for four.

"Wait here" said Anna to Yoh and Manta. "I'll go talk to Alicia about the project."

"OK." answered the boys

"…Alicia?"

"Oh, hi."

"We'll be presenting the project next week," said Anna "we should start working on it. Tomorrow is Saturday, come at my house"

"OK. I'll search on the Internet and I'll bring books about Stonehenge." replied Alicia "But where do you live?"

"Here's the address, you can come at 4 o'clock in the afternoon" said Anna, giving Alicia a piece of paper. "Don't be late"

"Don't worry, I won't."

Anna left with the boys. Alicia was starring at the piece of paper. Then she started running across the corridor.

"Anna! Wait!"

"What?" asked Anna irritated

"You gave me a...shopping list" said Alicia handing her the paper

"Bread, fish, salad, apples, milk…" read Manta and Yoh started laughing

Anna threw them a threatening look and the boys froze.

"Sorry, here's the real address" said Anna

Alicia returned in the classroom, got her schoolbag and left.

Saturday, 4.00 PM

Alicia was standing in front of a traditional Japanese house, looking at the paper in her hand. 'I think this is it. I should knock at the door 'she thought.

So she did, and a boy with blue spiked hair answered the door. He looked at the girl from head to toes.

"Who are you?" he asked

"My name is Alicia. I'm looking for Anna Kyouyama. Does she…does she live here…?" replied the girl with an uncertain voice

"Yes, she does. Come in" said the boy and closed the door behind her.

"By the way, my name is Horo Horo but you can call me Trey. I'm a friend of Yoh

"Nice to meet you. I'm working with Anna at a school project" said the girl

"What is it about?" asked Trey curiously

"Stonehenge. Hi, Anna!" said Alicia, seeing her classmate and three other boys around a small table. "Hi, Yoh…Manta…and…" she stopped

The other boy raised his head and looked at Alicia. He had violet hair with a spike at the back.

"…I don't know your name…" continued Alicia

"Come on, Ren, don't be shy," said Yoh, smiling at him. "She's Alicia, one of our classmates."

"Uh…hi!" said Ren blushing. 'Dammit! Why do I always have to blush around girls?' he thought

Anna got up and took a notebook out of her schoolbag.

"Let's go upstairs, in my room." said the girl. "And Manta, don't forget- tonight you're cooking dinner since Ryu is missing."

"All right" said the boy.

The girls climbed the stairs and started working on their project.

Downstairs, the boys were watching a kung-fu movie at TV.

"Hey, Ren, what do you think about these guys?"

"Bah, I could beat them up."

"Really? You could do that without using Bason?" asked Yoh with an innocent look on his face

"Piece of cake, Yoh" said Ren smiling proudly.

Manta was in the kitchen, truing to cook dinner.

"Hey, guys! Yooooh! I could use some help with the rice!" cried Manta

"Manta, shush! If you disturb Anna, she'll kill you!"

"Gulp! … Um, guys, do you think Alicia stays with us for dinner?" asked Manta, whispering this time

"I don't know." said Yoh

"Yoh, I guess you should be showing some hospitality to our guest" said Manta with a serious voice

"Right" said Yoh. "And what should I do?"

"Here, take these glasses of lemonade upstairs. They've been there working for two whole hours. And you can ask Anna if Alicia stays for dinner." replied Manta

"No, Yoh, give me those I'll take them upstairs. You stay here and help Manta with the rice" said Ren

"OK"

In the mean time, the girls had taken a break. Anna told Alicia she had to go somewhere and she'd be back in 15 minutes and Alicia was alone in the room, looking at the project. There were about four books, two notebooks, 10 pages on the table and their project had already five pages.

'It should be enough' she thought. 'Now, the only thing I have to do is tape it at the computer, put the images in it at print the whole thing'

Then, she heard a knock at the door.

"Come in."

Ren entered with the lemonades.

"So, how is it going?" he asked

"Fine. I think we have the final form of our project here" said Alicia pointing to the papers.

"Where's Anna?" asked Ren

"She went somewhere but she'll be back in 15 minutes."

"I brought you some lemonade. Manta thought you could be thirsty."

"Thanks. Hey, do you want to read what we did so far?"

"OK. Umm…let's see" said Ren reading the project. In five minutes, he had finisher reading.

"So, what do you think?" asked Alicia

"It's very good. You'll surely get an A+"

"It's nice of you to say that. Come on, tell me the truth!" insisted Alicia

"I told you the truth. It's brilliant. Nice work!"

"OK. Thanks!"

Ren turned to exit the room.

"Uhh…Alicia?"

"Um…what?"

Ren blushed violently.

"Will you have dinner with us?"

"No…I'll have dinner with my family at home. I'll go as soon as Anna returns."

"Do you want to come and stay with us downstairs? We're watching TV and Manta's cooking rice."

"Sounds really tempting," said Alicia smiling "but Anna told me to wait for her here" replied Alicia

Ren got out of the room and met Yoh on the corridor.

"What are you doing here, Yoh?"

"I noticed you weren't coming so I was curious what you were doing."

"So you came here and listened at the door?"

"Not really. So, what did Anna say? Is Alicia staying here for dinner?" asked Yoh with the innocent look on his face

"Anna is not here, but she may return any minute now. I asked Alicia and she said she'll have dinner with her parents" said Ren

"So what did you talk about with Alicia all this time?" asked Yoh playing innocent

"Her project…" replied Ren without looking in his eyes

"It's very good. You'll surely get an A+" murmured Yoh imitating Ren

"So you HAVE listened at the door, haven't you, Asakura!"

Yoh laughed.

"You like her, Ren?"

"Huh?"

"Do you like Alicia?"

"I...um…well…yes. But please, don't tell the others!"

"OK, I won't!"

"Thanks, Yoh!"

During the while, it turned out that Manta had burned the meal.

"Kusooooo! Anna is going to kill me!" said the boy, almost crying

Anna was in the living room talking to Yoh and Alicia was preparing to leave.

The blonde girl raised a brow, angry, and Alicia rushed into the kitchen. She gave him some advice and helped Manta cook a new, fast meal. When they were over. It was already dark. Alicia decided it was time she left.

"Goodbye, everyone! Thanks, Anna!" she said, waving her hand

The four boys and Anna sat around the table and started eating.

"Umm, delicious!"

"Yeah, we should bring her here more often" said Anna

"I agree" said Ren "She's delicious"

"WHAT?"

"I meant…it's delicious" said Ren, blushing

The boys started laughing. Suddenly, a cry was heard.

Amidamaru appeared.

"It's that girl…she was attacked by a gang on motorcycles" said the ghost

"I'll go!" said Ren

"Go with him, Yoh" said Manta

"No, I can handle them alone"

"Be careful not to expose us. Don't use Bason!" the girl warned him

"OK" said Ren and started running.

One hundred meters away, Alicia was in trouble. A member of the Diesel gang held her.

"Give us your money, pretty girl" he said

"I already told you I don't have any!" she yelled "Let me go!"

Out of nowhere, a fist hit the boy who released Alicia and she fell on the ground. Ten seconds later, every member of the gang was K.O.

"Are you OK?"

"Ren, you saved my life!" she said "I was so scared!"

She went towards him and hugged him tight. Ren's face turned red but he smiled.

"Come on, I'll see you to the train station" said Ren

"Thank you! How did you learned those moves…?" asked Alicia

"I took some courses and I watched many action movies. Tough neighborhood!" he continued. "Fortunately I was on my way home when I heard you."

"Thanks again" she replied.


	2. Strange dreams

**_The real happiness_**

Disclaimer: I don't own SK, but I do own Alicia Thomas. Read&Review!

Chapter 2: Strange dreams

Alicia arrived home with a smile on her face. 'Ren is such a nice guy' she thought "and he fought so…wow!'

She went upstairs, put the schoolbag on her bed and went down to have dinner with her family. Two hours later, she was already in bed thinking about the project. She fell asleep immediately.

In her dreams, she saw lines of zombies, and then she saw herself fighting against Yoh who used a katana, while she was telling him that ghosts aren't our friends, then she saw another fight, only now she realized these fights weren't normal, because she was using a ghost's attacks. Bason. And Yoh was using a samurai called Amidamaru; the fight for some sort of tournament ended in a draw. Then, she saw another image. Ren was dead, lying in a bed full of flowers with a lot of people around him: a girl with blue, long hair, some creepy guys in silvery outfits who had guns, and Manta, and lots of other people.

She woke up on Sunday, all sweat. Her forehead was burning.  
'Great, I'm sick. Happy birthday to me!" murmured the girl

As she lain back, the dreams came back to her attention.

'What was that? A premonition or something? And why did I see Ren dead? I'm scared. Maybe I should talk to Anna. Or maybe not. She'll think I'm crazy…"

Monday, at school.

"Hey, did you see Alicia?" Manta asked

"No, where is she? Why didn't she come to school?" asked Yoh

"I don't know" murmured Anna. "Let's go to our places, the teacher is coming."

But she didn't appear on Tuesday. Or Wednesday. She appeared on Thursday, with a pale face.

"I'm sorry, Anna. I couldn't come because I was sick. Here's your part of the project."

"But are you OK now?" she asked

"Yes, I am."

Once the classes were over, all students went home. Ren was in the courtyard waiting for Yoh. Anna invited Alicia to come at her place after school the next day and the girl agreed.

"I came to bring you this book, Yoh" said Ren

"Oh, OK. So, how are you?" asked Yoh

"Fine. Oh, there's Alicia!"

"You know, you should tell her you like her, Ren. I think she likes you too. You should ask her out."

"Ask who out?" asked Manta

'None of your business, baka' replied Ren telepathically in Manta's head

"It's settled then," said Anna. "I invited her to come at my place tomorrow after classes and she accepted."

"There's your chance, Ren "said Yoh smiling

'Aha! Alicia…' thought Manta

The next day, Anna and Alicia presented their project. They were successful.

"See, students? That's how you have to do it. Now, girls, get back to your places and you both receive an A+" said the teacher

Later that day, they went back at Anna and Yoh's place. Four boys were already waiting for them.

"Oh, look! They're back!" said Yoh "Hi, guys!"

Anna turned to Alicia.

"Ah, you don't know these two. They're Ryu and Lyserg."

"Um…hello!" said Alicia looking at them, her happy smile disappearing as she recognized them from her dream. Or nightmare. Whatever…

"Anna, I can't…I'm sorry, but I have to go."

"Wait, what's wrong?" asked Anna "Did Ryu scare you?"

"No, it's just…let's have a walk and I'll tell you. Look, I don't want you to think I'm crazy, but I sort of… had these dreams…these strange dreams with Yoh and Ren and everybody," she said, telling Anna all she had dreamed of.

"Oh, don't be silly!" said Anna "There are dreams even stranger than that!" she continued. "There's nothing to worry about, those dreams don't mean anything. You were probably impressed of that fight between him and the Diesel gang."

"You think so?"

"Yes. Calm down and let's go inside."

"OK…sorry for that"

"Never mind. We all have dreams, it's all natural." replied Anna

They spent a wonderful evening, and since Alicia's parents were away with business, she was going to spend her weekend at Anna's.

After washing the dishes, Alicia went upstairs into Anna's room (where she was going to sleep) and went to bed.

Anna was still sitting at the table thinking. All the boys were asleep.

'Should I have told them about Alicia? Maybe…I'll tell them when I'll be sure'

Then, she climbed the stairs, entered her room and fell asleep.

It was a hot night and the stars were shining brightly.

In the morning, Alicia was the first one who woke up. She tiptoed on the corridor, careful not to awake the others.

She went outside for the morning gym and she saw au unclear silhouette floating on the sky, two meters from the ground.

"Aaaaargh!" she yelled "What…is…are…you? A ghost?"

'Looks like the ghost I saw in my dream the last week' she thought

Anna went out of the house drawn by the noise, closely followed by Yoh and Ren.

"What's wrong?" she asked

"Your place is haunted, did you know that?"

"What do you mean, haunted?"

"I saw that ghost from my dream, that samurai, Amidamaru."

"What!" said Yoh

"I told you it wasn't just a dream, what if it is a premonition?" said Alicia, almost crying. "I don't know what is going on here, but it's scary."

"You can see ghosts?" asked Yoh, but was brutally interrupted by Ren

"What dreams?" he asked

Anna stopped him.

"Since when were you able to see them, Alicia?"

"Today I guess. Why?"

"I think I'm starting to understand. And those dreams you had weren't premonitions, they already happened. Somehow, you saw some of Ren's memories."

"WHAT!" Ren yelled

"Think about it, how did it happen?" asked Anna

"I don't know…"

"What EXACTLY did she see?" asked Ren angry

Now, Alicia was looking down. She was ashamed of herself and she wouldn't dare to look at Ren. She knew he will hate her forever, and she couldn't talk.

So Anna answered.

"She saw your family's zombies, two fights against Yoh and that time when you died during the tournament."

"She knows more than enough now…" said Ren

"And that's not all. I had two other dreams last night" said Alicia, still looking down." In one of them, I was repairing the Sword of Light with Mosuke and in the other one I was bitten by a vampire named Boris. THAT was really scary."

"Ryu and Lyserg's memories" replied Yoh as the rest of the boys got out of the house.

"What did you say about my memories?" asked Lyserg

"I think I know how it happened" said Alicia and all heads turned toward her. "But first, please tell me how a person who died can come back."

"It's a long story…"said Anna. "Come, I'll tell you at breakfast"

So, after they ate, Alicia knew everything about shamans and the Tournament.

"Now, it's your turn" said Anna

"I think I happened to see their memories because I touched them."

"Because you touched them? This doesn't clear anything." said the Itako

"Why do you say that, Anna?" asked Yoh

"She touched me too, when we were working. Why didn't she see my memories?"

"Then, why do you think I saw all those things?" asked Alicia, looking at Anna

"We must know first, did this happen before?" asked Anna

"No, never."

"In this case, I don't know what to say" said Anna

"Well, this is getting interesting, but I have to go" said Ryu getting up

"Me too", said Lyserg

"Where are you too going?" asked Trey, curious

"We have a double date with Elly and Milly" said Ryu "They phoned to tell us they're in town. Oh well, let's go, Lyserg."

"That explains…" started Yoh

"Explains what?" asked Ren

"Why he didn't propose to Alicia the moment he saw her" said Yoh

"What…propose to me…why?"

"Because you are a pretty girl and he can't seem to find himself a girlfriend, so he asks every beautiful girl he sees to be his lady." said Ren

"Oh, wait! I think I got it!" said Alicia

"What?"

"I think this power of mine is somehow connected to my emotions" she replied, looking only at Anna

"Could be, why are you saying that?"

"When Ren found me, I was scared because I had been attacked by that gang. He helped me get up by grabbing my hand. As for Lyserg and Ryu, we shook hands when we met. I guess I was a little emotional because I was starting to make connections with my dream." said the girl

"That explains things, but why now?" asked Yoh, looking at Anna, the girl who always knew everything.

"I think we found a new shaman. Just like Ryu's case, her power has been hidden. A strong emotion and the approach to us brought her power to see people's memories. The second time she used this power, she managed to see Amidamaru because she made the connections." explained Anna

"But, Anna, I don't want to use this power. I just want it to stop!" said Alicia "I don't want to get into people's privacy. Can you make it stop? Can any of you…?"

Then, she stopped, seeing their shocked faces.

'She doesn't want to be a shaman. She doesn't want to be like us' thought Ren with a sad look on his face.

"Personally, I can't make it stop. But I can help you learn to control it. I understand your feelings, Alicia." said Anna "You'll start training tomorrow. You must learn about yourself. When you'll be sure on you, you'll be able control your emotions and you'll control this power too."

"Will you help me do it, Anna?"

"I'll make you a strong shaman. I sense a lot of power inside of you." said Anna

"And I'll be able to fight like Yoh and Ren, in my dream?"

"We fight much better now!" said Yoh

"Yes, you will. There are so many good things you can do with these powers! You could help humanity, for example. But you must be careful not to expose yourself. People aren't ready to learn about us."

"But how could this power help?" asked Alicia

"When you meet bad shamans, you can use their memories to find their weaknesses and defeat them" said Anna

"But, I'd have to sleep first!"

"No, I think sleeping is just the first stage. Once you develop your skills, I think you'll be able to see their memories exactly when you touch them."

"OK I guess" said Alicia "What can we do now?"

"I'm going for a walk in the park. Coming, Manta?" said Yoh

"Sure" replied the small boy

"I'll go shopping" said Anna

"How about you, Trey?" asked Alicia

"I have to go shopping with my sister Pirika" said the boy. "Ren, please, come with me, otherwise I'll die of boredom."

"OK. Alicia, want to come with us?" asked Ren hopefully

"Yes, sure. I want to meet Pirika anyway" answered the girl.


	3. Livin' for the weekend

**_The real happiness_**

Disclaimer: I don't own SK, I only own Alicia

Chapter 3: Livin' for the weekend

Pirika's shopping session had only lasted for two hours. The two girls and the two boys returned to Anna's place with Trey holding two big packages- Pirika's things. Alicia had bought a bracelet. Ren looked as if he'd kill the next person that wanted to go shopping with him.

"I never thought Trey can eat six hot-dogs one after the other!" said Alicia

Trey put the packages down and rushed at the bathroom.

"He'll stay there for at least half an hour" said Ren

"I'll go upstairs, I should do my homework for Monday…" said Alicia and then she left. Pirika started to look in her shopping things and Ren went outside. It was a superb and very hot day of summer.

'I'd like to go swimming right now' he thought. Just then, he saw Yoh and Manta with a couple of ice-creams.

"Hey, Ren, how was shopping with Pirika?" asked Yoh

"A nightmare! She dragged us through all the shops in Tokyo; I thought I will explode. She bought two tones of clothes and other stuff and she made Trey carry them."

"Poor Trey!" said Manta

"So, did Alicia, make you carry the stuff she bought, too?" asked Yoh

"She only bought a bracelet and she's wearing it right now"

"Where is she?"

"Upstairs, doing her homework"

BUM! A loud noise was heard and Pirika ran out of the house holding a hand on her mouth.

"That smell…TREY!" shouted the three boys

"Oh my God, Alicia is still inside!" shouted Manta

Ren rushed into the house holding his breath. He found Alicia lying unconscious on the floor. He took her outside, to get fresh air and put her on the grass, under a tree.

"She's not breathing, maybe I should give her mouth-to-mouth respiration" said Ren

"Uh, are you sure you know how to do it?" asked Yoh

"Yes, I know!" said Ren looking at her with a worried face

"I guess you should, then" said Manta

Ren bent down, his lips approaching Alicia's, but just then, the girl opened her eyes, saw the scene and pushed Ren away.

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING?" said the girl with an angry face while Yoh and Manta started laughing wildly.

"I…just…you see…I wanted to save your life…Trey threw a bomb…you fainted…I wanted to help you breathe…" said Ren with a guilty look on his face

"I…I'm sorry, Ren. I thought…" she started

"You thought what?" asked Ren

"Oh, nothing, never mind!" said the girl and returned inside, now that the smell was gone. Trey and Pirika left the same moment, because they had to visit some friends in the other side of the town.

"Bad luck, Ren. Next time, ask Trey to throw a stronger bomb" said Yoh, still laughing

"Shut up, Asakura!" said Ren furious

The three boys entered the house. Yoh turned on the TV and he started watching a movie with Manta. Ren went upstairs. He knocked at Anna's room's door.

"Come in."

Ren entered the room carefully.

"Look, I'm sorry that I yelled at you earlier," said Alicia. "Thanks for taking me out on time. Looks like you made a job out of rescuing me" she ended, smiling.

Ren was stunned. He had come here to apologize and instead, she had apologized. He felt his cheeks getting red.

"So, what did you want to tell me?" asked Alicia but she received no answer. Ren was still starring at the floor.

"Ren? Earth to Ren!"

"Huh?"

"What did you want to tell me?"

"I wanted to apologize but you went ahead of me" murmured Ren

"Since you still are here, can you help me with this problem at math?"

"All right."

"Good. Come sit here, next to me"

Ren came closer to her. He was trying to ignore his crazy heartbeat; his heart was beating so fast and loud he was afraid she'd hear it. But then he focused on the problem. Together, they managed to find the solution.

'We're making such a good team' thought the boy

Alicia's homework was soon over.

"Thanks, Ren. You're really good at math!"

"You're welcome" he said

Lyserg opened the door without knocking, since he knew Anna hadn't come home yet.

"Ren, I was looking for you…oh, you're helping her with her homework"

"How romantic!" said Ryu, appearing behind Lyserg and they started laughing. Alicia looked at Ren who was blushing (again!) and understood everything. She smiled at Ryu and faced him with a warm and sweet voice.

"Even math can be very romantic…if you do problems with the right guy. And if you want to know, I personally think he's more romantic than you" continued the girl, and then got out of the room.

Lyserg and Ryu stunned. Ren looked at them with a happy face. He couldn't believe it. She had defended him against Ryu and Lyserg and she thought he was romantic. The three boys went downstairs and found Anna who had returned with a long package wrapped in brown paper.

"It's a surprise" said the girl and took the package upstairs.

The dinner cooked by Ryu was delicious. Everyone was relaxed; they were talking, telling jokes, and congratulating Ryu. Anna was talking to Alicia about what she was going to do the next day. Ren was daydreaming but he was quickly brought back to Earth when Yoh whispered in his ear.

"So, what happened between you and Alicia?"

'That bastard Ryu must have told them' thought Ren and continued loudly: "Nothing".

"Lyserg told us that she said you were romantic" Manta whispered

"Mind your own business, kuso tare!"

"Hey, what happened?" asked Trey who had just entered, drawn by the smell.

"We're talking about their love story" said Lyserg

"Whose love story?" asked Trey curious

"Ren and Alicia's, of course" said Ryu laughing

Then, all the boys except for Ren started laughing wildly. Ren's face sank somewhere under the table (which was something, knowing that Japanese tables are about 30 cm above the floor).

Anna turned an ugly look at them since she had been interrupted.

"That's it! I tolerated your whispering, your bad manners at table, but interrupting our discussion- that's very rude. Ryu-Yoh-Manta-Lyserg-Trey!"

Now they all froze, waiting for the sky to fall on their heard.

"Apologize to Ren!" yelled Anna

"Gomen ne!" said five small voices at the same time

"And if you'll interrupt me again, I'll make sure you run 15 kilometers every morning, for the rest of your lives" said the girl in a calm voice.

Later, Lyserg and Trey washed the dishes.

Alicia turned towards Anna.

"How did you know what happened?"

"I can hear people's thoughts" answered the Itako

"So, you can hear my thoughts too?"

"I don't have to. You say what you think. I appreciate your honesty. Still, there's something you didn't say."

"What?"

"Ren obviously likes you. Tell him if you like him too, you saw what he has to deal with. You shouldn't play with his feelings."

"I'm not playing with his feelings, I just don't know…I like him, but I prefer to keep it for myself until I'm sure. And besides, I want to focus on my training.

"Right", said Anna. But you'll have to say something sooner or later"

"I'm tired, I'm going to bed" said Alicia

Half an hour later, everyone was asleep. Everyone except for Ren. He had taken a decision.

'Tomorrow, I'll ask her out'.

A cold voice was heard in the dark night.

"Finally, I found him. I will have my revenge, now. Enjoy your last hours, Yoh Asakura" said the boy and flew away with his Spirit of Fire.


	4. An exhausting day

**_The real happiness_** Disclaimer: i don't own Shaman King. I only own Alicia and other people you don't know.

Chapter 4: An exhausting day

Anna woke Alicia at 6.30 o'clock. Everyone else was still sleeping. They had a quick meal and then went outside. Anna handed her classmate the package.

"I looked for a sword for you all yesterday and I found this one"

"Thanks, it's very beautiful!"

"And strong, too. I also looked for a spirit and I found Fujiko.

She is a samurai and her skills are as good as Amidamaru's. Now, you have to learn to perform Unity with Fujiko. You must concentrate on your purpose. The words are Spirit form! Unity . Do you follow?"

"Yes"

"Perform Unity and let your spirit guide you. Let her moves become yours."

Anna turned to Fujiko.

"You must trust Alicia. She has a good heart and she'll use you to do good things. It's time to know each other. I hope you'll become good friends"

The samurai girl nodded.

"Ready?" asked Alicia, looking at her guardian spirit.

"Ready!"

One, two, three…

"Fujiko! Spirit form! Unity!"

Fujiko became a small ball that could fit in Alicia's hand. Then, Alicia took the spirit to her heart. Now, the two girls were like one.

The first hour, Alicia's moves were uncontrolled and they didn't always correspond to Fujiko's. But soon, they learned about each other and began to trust each other. They hit Anna's targets precisely. At nine, the boys were awake. Anna stopped the training, saying that Alicia should take a break.

"Ok" Anna started, looking at the boys "whish one of you wants to fight against Alicia and Fujiko?"

"I'm hungry" Trey said. "I never fight on empty stomach"

"Lyserg…no, he uses Oversoul. Ryu?"

"No thanks, I don't have time to teach her, I have another date"

"Ren…probably not. Yoh!!!!!!"

"What?!"

"You'll fight against Alicia or I'll make you run 100 km every day and no TV for a month!"

"Fine!'

'I'll defeat her in two minutes and then I'll eat' he thought while grabbing his sword.

He went outside.

"Oh, nice samurai. And where did you get the sword?"

"Anna gave them to me. So, are you ready?"

"Ready! Amidamaru!"

"Fujiko!"

"Spirit form! Unity!" said the two at the same time.

Lyserg, Manta, Trey and Ren went outside to see the battle.

"Hey, Yoh, take it easy on her!" Trey said

"Yeah, she's only a girl, remember that!" Lyserg continued

Anna interfered.

"I don't want you to take it easy on her. If you do that, she'll never learn. Attack her as if she was Hao!"

Yoh narrowed his eyes. Hao? He blocked the first and the second hit, and then started charging at the girl. Alicia was now in defense. Then, she attacked again. Ten minutes passed like this. A samurai-vs.-samurai duel.

'She's really good!' Yoh thought now. 'But let's see if she can take this!'

"Celestial Slash!" cried Yoh, sending the attack towards her sword.

Alicia jumped and started twisting into the air gracefully.

"Long-spin Slash!" she shouted, sending a green light towards the red one. Her attack neutralized his. Then, with a strong hit, Alicia made Yoh's sword fly and thrust into the ground a few meters away. She pointed her sword towards his neck.

"You lost"

Anna couldn't believe it. Yoh had been defeated by a shaman who had practiced only two hours!

"Impossible!" Manta whispered.

Alicia lowered her sword, and then helped Yoh get up. She looked at Anna who was still shocked.

'Where was this girl during the Tournament? She could have helped us so much…' the Itako thought

"Anna, what is it? Did I do something wrong?" Alicia asked

"No, you did very well. It's just…I didn't expect you to defeat Yoh, that's all. Officially, you've only been a shaman for two hours, and you accomplished a lot. I'm proud of you!"

Alicia looked at the ground blushing.

Anna turned towards the others.

"Which one's next?"

But then, Fujiko talked.

"Miss Anna, Alicia is exhausted. Please don't make her fight her more"

"All right, Alicia, you'll fight against Trey in the afternoon and Ren tonight. And this will happen until you defeat them both. After you defeat them both, I'll teach you how to use your furioku."

"Furioku? What is that?" asked Alicia with curiosity

"It's shamanic energy. You must find a way to canalize your spirit into an object. That is the second level" Yoh replied

"Oh, OK. Thanks, Fujiko! You were great!"

"You're welcome. You are a strong shaman, and you proved this in battle. I decided to stay with you from now on" the ghost said

Anna, Alicia and Fujiko left talking.

The boys stayed behind discussing the fight.

"She was so fast!" Lyserg said

"And did you see the long-spin Slash, Ren? Looks like you'll be in trouble if she uses it on you!" Trey added sarcastically

"How did she manage too…did you see how she destroyed my Celestial Slash?" Yoh asked

"She's going to be a strong adversary. Don't underestimate her, Trey!" Manta said

The weather suddenly changed. Grey clouds covered the sky. A strong wind started blowing through the trees.

Yoh's twin brother appeared with his Spirit of fire.

"Ha…Hao?"

"Indeed, Yoh. I came here for revenge…prepare to die!"

"Weren't you supposed to be dead?" Anna asked him.

As a response, Hao's spirit hit Anna with full force and sent her flying then falling to the ground a few meters away.

"Anna!!!" Alicia shouted and ran to help her master. The Itako was unconscious, but not dead. A few seconds later, Yoh, Trey, Lyserg and Ren were attacking Hao together, with no results. The Spirit of Fire hit them all and sent them to the ground the same way as it did with Anna. Hao was preparing to burn Yoh.

"Fujiko, it's up to us now! Enter the sword!" she whispered, calling all her furioku.

"Long-spin Slash!"

The attack surprised Hao, who got hurt. The Spirit of Fire dropped Yoh.

'Another shaman! She's a strong one, I'll make her join me' Hao thought.

Throwing one last look at the shamans, he disappeared in a fire ball.

"Thank you, Alicia! You saved my life!" Yoh said

"You're all hurt…oh my God, I'm going to call an ambulance!"

The ambulance arrived a few minutes later. They were all installed in the same ward. Ren asked Alicia to come closer and took her hand into his.

"Please, be careful. Now that Hao knows who you are and since you managed to hurt him, he'll probably come after you. He'll probably kill you!"

"I'll be fine, don't worry. He could have killed me then if he really wanted to"

"Maybe, but please, be careful!" said Ren with a soft voice

"Why are you being like this" Do you really care about me so much?"

"I don't want to lose you…I love you"

Cliffy, cliffy! 


End file.
